HUNTSVILLE — The Cardiac Bulldogs did it again.
Facing a deficit late in the fourth quarter, the Alabama A&M football showed why it cannot be counted out until the final horn sounds.
Aqeel Glass threw a 32-yard touchdown pass to Ryan Stoves in the game’s final minutes as Alabama A&M erased a two-score deficit to rally past Jackson State 48-43 Saturday afternoon in a Southwestern Athletic Conference game.
With the win, Alabama A&M (6-4, 3-2 in SWAC) sets up a showdown at Alcorn State (6-3, 4-1) that could determine the SWAC Eastern title.
“Our last few games have come down to the last play,” Alabama A&M coach Connell Maynor said. “So we’ve been in these kinds of situations before. We had guys step up when their number was called and the game was on the line. ”
This season, Alabama A&M has shown a flair for the dramatic.
Five of Alabama A&M’s six wins have required the Bulldogs to overcome a fourth-quarter deficit.
Saturday’s win against Jackson State (4-6, 3-2) followed that trend.
Leaning on its running game, Jackson State piled up yards on the ground while building a nine-point cushion late in the fourth quarter.
KeShawn Harper led Jackson State with 135 rushing yards and a touchdown while quarterback Jalon Jones added 130 and another score as the Tigers amassed 361 yards on the ground.
But every time Jackson State struck with a big play, Alabama A&M responded.
The biggest moments came late in the fourth quarter.
After Jalon Jones ran for a 54-yard touchdown to give Jackson State a 43-34 lead with 4:59 remaining, Glass and company immediately began to mount a comeback.
Glass threw a 54-yard touchdown to Abdul-Fatai Ibrahim to pull Alabama A&M within two. Following a defensive stop on the next possession, Glass threw a 32-yard go-ahead touchdown to Ryan Stoves with 25 seconds remaining.
“I was ready for the moment,” Stoves said. “Like our offensive coordinator (Duane Taylor) says, ‘Make the plays your supposed and make the plays you’re not expected to, and that’s how you become great.’ So when my number was called, I was ready.”
Glass passed for a season-high 410 yards and four touchdowns, completing 25 of 40 attempts. The junior from St. Louis also broke to Alabama A&M records, breaking Tracy Kendall’s previous records (1989) for single-season touchdown passes (26) and single-season passing yards (2,886).
Glass has passed for 3,064 yards and 29 touchdowns this season.
Ibrahim finished with a season-high 203 receiving yards and two touchdowns on nine receptions. Zabrian Moore and Stoves also caught touchdown passes.
Jordan Bentley led Alabama A&M on the ground with 132 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries. The senior from Guntersville, Ala. Surpassed the 1,000-yard milestone on the season.
Courtesy: AAMU Athletics
Glass is among the nation’s leaders in passing yards and touchdown passes.